From one great to another
McCoy Tyner pays tribute to John Coltrane at Lincoln Center
Very slowly, McCoy Tyner walked on stage at the recent Jazz for Obama event at Symphony Space. Tyner’s 73. And when the master pianist began playing, thunder and lightning struck.
The rolling modal sounds of his song “Walk Spirit, Talk Spirit” filled the hall with percussive power, his left hand rising high to pound chords. A meditative original, “Search for Peace,” followed, featuring tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano. Tyner’s solo evoked tender moments of grace held together by pillars of strength.
That softer vibe will be the focus of his participation in the John Coltrane Festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center next weekend. Over two nights, Tyner will be joined by bassist Dave Holland and drummer Jack DeJohnette to explore “The Gentle Side of John Coltrane.”
Tyner was a member of Coltrane’s famous quartet of the early to mid-’60s. As a teen, he met Coltrane in Philadelphia, where they both were raised.
“John was a great bandleader — period. He gave us a lot of freedom,” Tyner says. “That band was amazing. John knew what he was looking for.”
Previously Tyner had been playing in a group led by fellow Philly saxophonist Benny Golson, who encouraged him to move forward with Coltrane. And Miles Davis, in whose classic quintet Coltrane had been performing, thought Coltrane should have his own ensemble.
Coltrane liked Tyner’s piano style, and picked him, bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer Elvin Jones to join a band, circa 1960.
“Elvin had that drive. He could swing you out of this world,” Tyner recalls. “He was very strong fundamentally, and came from a musical family in Detroit. Thad and Hank Jones were his brothers.”
Garrison, also from Philly, had played with Tyner in a big band fronted by Philly-based trumpeter Cal Massey.
Philadelphia has produced a plethora of great jazz musicians over many generations. One reason: The musical community there was family-oriented, with musicians practicing in one another’s homes to hone their skills. The home of Tyner’s mother-in-law was one of those places.
Tyner’s wife, Aisha Tyner, remembers those days.
“John was beautiful,” she says. “I knew him before McCoy did. My sister Khadija sang. John’s first wife, Naima, and Khadijah were very close. And the guys would come over to practice because my mom had a piano.”
Those guys included Tyner, Coltrane, Richie Powell, Lee Morgan, Massey and Sonny Rollins.
“John liked singers,” Aisha Tyner explains.
“When you listen to that ‘Ballads’ album, you could tell that,” says Tyner, agreeing with his wife.
She is from North Philly, Tyner from the western part of the city. The two were married in 1959 and had three sons.
When Coltrane made his “Ballads” album, he was under fire from some music critics. They described the intensity of his playing as “angry.” This was in the midst of the civil rights movement, so protest was everywhere. But Coltrane’s gentle and even spiritual side was always there, as those who knew him verify.
Selections from other 1960s recordings with Coltrane’s classic quartet, such as “John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman” and “A Love Supreme,” are probable sources of songs for the concerts. So are ballad classics, like Coltrane’s “Naima” and Tyner’s “Aisha,” which he recorded with Coltrane on the album “Olé.”
“John was a wonderful human being. I enjoyed playing with him,” Tyner says. “He was very sincere about what he was doing — always working on cycles and various things. His approach, his interpretation, was very unique. He was a wonderful composer as well as player.
“If we’d go to a little town and we had to play that night or the next night, he always made time to practice his instrument. It wasn’t a joke to him, he was serious. He was like a doctor, a scientist, on that saxophone.”
The writer is host of “JazzPlus with Greg Thomas” on WVOX 1460 AM and online at wvox.com from 2-3 p.m. on Sundays.